Before the first big snowstorm of 2026 blanketed almost the whole country, a stellar lineup of bands would play Allentown, PA. The Menzingers and future touring mates for their spring tour I Am The Avalanche closed out the show, while The Ergs and Lax Poetic opened. Having formed only last year, Lax Poetic are a newer band from Philadelphia. They are no strangers to the music scene. The members have been in multiple Philadelphia bands like Luther, who have played with The Menzingers countless times. Lax Poetic take from their other bands but puts more of a tighter sound to their music while still having an engaging stage performance. This is only the beginning for Lax Poetic, and I can bet we will be hearing their name throughout the year.
Following Lax Poetic came The Ergs, a New Jersey staple punk band fronted by drummer Mikey Erg who play your standard punk/pop-punk in the vein of The Ramones and Descendents. Filling a 30-minute set with about 13 songs, The Ergs played their fast style of punk while throwing in a cover of Devo’s “Beautiful World” followed by a slowed-down love song where Mikey Erg sang in front of the drums called “Books About Miles Davis.” The Ergs don’t play many shows nowadays, but when they do, it’s always special.
In the coming months, I Am The Avalanche will be doing a spring tour with The Menzingers; this show and the show before this one were a taste of what the tour is going to be like. If the tour is anything like this show, it will be filled with sing-alongs, crowd surfing, and kinsmanship. As far as this show goes, though, if you’ve been following I Am The Avalanche for some time, you know their setlist has been filled with all their major songs the crowd has come to love. However, singer Vinnie Caruana announced that this is the last show with a setlist like this. In the spring, we can expect a new I Am The Avalanche album on Equal Vision Records. Not much else was said about the album, but you can expect that there will be a new setlist for The Menzingers tour. It is going to be interesting seeing what songs get swapped out going forward because I Am The Avalanche have many crowd favorites, but I am sure the new songs will fit right in.
I have been seeing The Menzingers for years. I’ve seen them from up in their home city of Scranton, down to their new home of Philadelphia, many times, along with all the cities in between, including Allentown. The thing about The Menzingers is that they truly remind me of The Bouncing Souls; they are consistent and a band you can always count on. Their shows aren’t this big of a production because they let the crowd be the focus of the show, and they never lose touch with who they are. They truly are The Bouncing Souls of Pennsylvania; they just need a nickname for their fans now. When you see The Menzingers live, you know you are going to get not only a good show, but a feeling of joy and happiness like you just spent an evening with your closest friends.
Like I Am The Avalanche, The Menzingers have been playing the same favorites of songs for a few years now. Opening song “America (You’re Freaking Me Out)” got the biggest response; even though it was released in 2019, it still holds the same meaning as of today. Newer songs like “Try” and “Hope Is A Dangerous Little Thing” have found a way into the crowds’ hearts, and the response is just like when they hear “Tellin’ Lies” and “Burn After Reading.”
However, even though those songs aren’t that new, The Menzingers have been running on them for three years. That’s when Greg Barnett asked what everyone would be doing during the snowstorm and then dropped that they recorded, mastered, and pressed a new album to come out this year. A date wasn’t given, and like I Am The Avalanche, no new song was played.
Both bands have new albums coming out this year, which makes this year a promising year for new music. Even though we didn’t get a taste of new music, this show was special because we got to enjoy this type of setlist one last time before it changes, probably for the spring tour. As everyone left the show in haste to beat the snowstorm, knowing we are getting new albums from I Am The Avalanche and The Menzingers later this year was enough to make us want this winter to move along faster.
The Menzingers
I Am The Avalanche
The Ergs
Lax Poetic